The famous entrepreneur/inventor Freelan Oscar Stanley completed the construction of the Stanley Hotel in 1909.
Stanley built the hotel on land he had purchased from the Earl of Dunraven, an Irish nobleman. Today, ghost hunters claim that Dunraven’s spirit haunts room 407: the lights turn off on their own, and his ghostly face is often seen framed in the room’s windows.
Stanley accepted only high society guests, excluding those who did not belong. During World War I, when tourism nearly vanished, Stanley personally sat in the lobby, turning away guests he deemed unfit, even if the hotel was nearly empty.
In its heyday, at the beginning of the 20th century, decades before it became “The Shining Hotel,” the Stanley hosted public figures such as Theodore Roosevelt and Emperor Hirohito of Japan.
THE KING’S ARRIVAL
When Stephen King arrived at the Stanley Hotel in the 1970s, the hotel had already fallen into disrepair but regained its former glory after a change in management, thanks in part to King’s novel and the subsequent film by Stanley Kubrick.
Room 217, the focal point of the novel (later changed to 237 in Kubrick’s film adaptation), is where King slept that night, and it has since become a quasi-religious site, extremely popular among guests of The Shining hotel, requiring months of advance booking.
THE MYSTERY DEEPENS
Long before the Stanley became The Shining Hotel, room 217 had an interesting history.
In 1917, head housekeeper Elizabeth Wilson, fearing a storm would knock out the power, began lighting the hotel’s lanterns.
While trying to light one in what is now room 217, the lantern exploded, causing the floor to collapse beneath her, and she fell into the room below.
The housekeeper broke her ankles but survived. However, for paranormal investigators, Wilson’s story is more unsettling than it seems because newspapers of the time reported very different versions of the event and provided various names for the woman involved.
Since the employee records are now lost and no photograph of “Elizabeth Wilson” exists, some believe we may never know who was really in that room.
EVEN JIM CARREY AT THE STANLEY HOTEL
More recently, actor Jim Carrey requested to stay in room 217 while filming “Dumb and Dumber” at the Stanley.
The story goes that after only three hours, he wanted to change rooms.
One staff member claimed, “What happened to him in that room, we don’t know. He never talked about it.”
Many ghost hunters say room 401 is actually the most haunted room in the hotel, inhabited by the “phantom thief” who roams there, even stealing guests’ personal belongings. Others note that the rumble caused by the adjacent elevator, which plays a central role in the film, is enough to rattle guests’ nerves.
Beyond room 401, many ghost hunters believe that the entire fourth floor of the Stanley is a hotspot for paranormal activity.
Many claim to have heard the spectral giggles of children running up and down the hallways.
Another frequently reported spirit at the hotel is that of a former maintenance worker named Paul, who died of a heart attack while shoveling snow outside the hotel in 2005. Tour guides claim that Paul interacts with guests during nighttime tours of the building.
A SPOOKY TOURIST ATTRACTION
The hotel attracts numerous visitors with its four types of daily tours, designed for those seeking an experience in a haunted hotel.
Although the hotel’s ballroom plays a rather chilling role in The Shining, the Stanley MacGregor Ballroom is now a popular venue for wedding parties. That said, amateur ghost hunters who have dined in the room have claimed to hear the sound of Flora Stanley’s piano, the long-deceased wife of the owner.
While Mrs. Stanley is said to haunt the ballroom, guests, and even staff members, have repeatedly reported seeing her husband in the billiard room and the bar.
While both the novel and the film depict a frighteningly isolated hotel from civilization, the Stanley is actually just outside the center of Estes Park, a popular summer resort town near Denver.
Though the film features a significant hedge maze, the Stanley never had one until a few years ago. At the end of June 2015, after choosing from over 300 design proposals, the Stanley finally inaugurated a publicly accessible maze, cementing its identity as “The Shining Hotel.”
Today, the hotel has been restored and is fully operational: for those who dare, you can book a room…
For those who wish to stay near the Stanley Hotel, we leave you the link for booking…
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